learn to solder:
Owl Badge Kit
Cat no.
KM1092
4
Testing &
troubleshooting:
DOUBLE-CHECK
Before you apply power, it
is good practice to double-
check that you have the
components in the right
spot and soldered correctly.
Make sure the transistor and
two LEDs are in the circuit
board the correct way. If
not, you need to de-solder
the component and solder
it in the right way. See our instructions opposite about de-
soldering.
Look closely at all of your solder joints and make sure they all
look like “volcanos” as we described on page 2. If not, apply
the soldering iron again and add a tiny bit of solder to make
the solder joint reliable. Make sure all of the component legs
are trimmed so they are not short-circuiting each other.
Finally, make sure you don’t have any bridged solder joints
where one solder joint has joined with another because
of too much solder. If this is the case, follow the de-solder
instructions opposite to remove the solder, and then solder
again.
POWERING IT UP
Insert a CR2032 battery (We
recommend, SB2522) and
your Owl’s LEDs should
light up when you touch
the round touch plate on
the front of the Owl’s circuit
board with your finger.
Note: If the LEDs are not
very bright when you touch
the sensor, it may mean your
finger is too dry. You will need
to moisten your finger slightly
and try again.
Note: Your owl’s design will
differ to the one shown here.
TROUBLESHOOTING GUIDE
If your badge doesn’t work:
1. Make sure your battery is not flat. Try using a fresh battery.
2. Recheck all of your solder joints (review the soldering
guide on page 2)
3. Make sure you don’t have any short-circuits because of
component legs touching or solder pads on the circuit
board bridged together.
If the red LEDs are very dim, make sure you are using a fresh
battery. If they are still dim with a fresh battery, double-check
that you inserted the resistors into the right spots. If you
still can’t get the badge to work, you can show the circuit
diagram (shown below) to an electronics enthusiast who can
help fault-find it with you.
DE-SOLDERING
In the unfortunate event that you need to remove a
component, you need to de-solder it from the circuit board.
You will need asolder sucker (We recommend, TH1862) or
Desolder braid/Solder Wick (We recommend, NS3020) to do
this. If you are using a solder sucker, heat the solder joint to
melt the solder and use the pump to suck the solder away. If
you are using de-solder braid, you place that over the solder
joint, apply heat, and you will see the solder be soaked up
into the braid. Insert the component the correct way and
solder again.
220Ω
R1
3V
Q1
